


Stuck in Silence

by PeriodDramaWriter



Category: Call the Midwife
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-25
Updated: 2019-01-25
Packaged: 2019-10-16 01:06:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17539769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PeriodDramaWriter/pseuds/PeriodDramaWriter
Summary: The year is 1979 and 17-year-old Angela Turner has her first suitor. Is he all that Angela makes him out to be to her parents, however? Her father isn't so certain. Will Angela ever reveal to her parents what Arthur is really like? Will she allow them to support her and help her find her voice? Or will she be stuck in silence forever? Please comment to let me know what you think!





	Stuck in Silence

It was a late afternoon during the summer of 1979 when Angela was sat on a wooden bench in the middle of the park with her suitor, his arm wrapped around her slight waist in a secure hold as her head was cushioned upon his shoulder and he trailed the palm of his hand along the curve of her side through the thin floral fabric of her dress. She couldn't prevent the deep sigh of contentment from escaping her as she draped her arm across his stomach and curled her fingers into the fabric of his leather jacket, her eyes falling closed as he kissed her temple.

The two of them sat together in a comfortable silence for a time as the gentle breeze swept through their hair like a kind hand, Angela nuzzling the warm skin at the side of his neck with the tip of her nose as he held her close. After a time, however, she cast her gaze down to the watch on her wrist and saw that it was almost quarter-to six. 'I should be going.' She sighed as she lifted her head from his shoulder and shifted out of his protective embrace. 'I have to be back for six.' Arthur shuffled closer to her on the bench then and stroked her warm cheek.

'Don't go just yet.' He told her before leaning in to steal a long kiss, his hand leaving her soft cheek in order to come to rest upon the jut of her hip through her dress. 'Ten more minutes.' The two of them shared several long and slow kisses before Angela brought her hand to rest upon his broad chest through his shirt, her breathing ragged as she gently pushed him away.

'I wish I could,' She breathed, 'But my Dad-'

'Ten more minutes.' Arthur repeated himself as he gazed into her eyes, his tone changing as his hold on her hip became rather possessive before Angela let out a soft gasp in response. 'Please, Ange. Just ten minutes.'

'Alright.' She gave a nervous nod before a warm smile spread across his lips and his hold on her hipbone loosened, his hand coming up to tuck a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

'That's my girl.' He smoothed the backs of his fingers across her cheek before taking her chin in between his thumb and forefinger, a gentle sparkle in her beautiful brown eyes. 'You know I love you, don't you?' She nodded as her soft rosebud lips curled up into an enchanting smile.

'I do.' She reassured him. 'I love you too.'

He directed her face closer to his then before capturing her lower lip in a languid kiss, Angela bringing her hand up to cup the side of his neck as she settled into it. Her lips were soft and warm beneath his own as the two of them kissed on the bench, his hand loosening its hold on her chin before it slipped around to the back of her head and he cradled it in its palm as he traced the seam of her lower lip with his tongue. Angela sighed at that and parted her lips to allow him to deepen their kiss, her fingers threading through his dark brown hair as their lips moved over one another's in perfect sync.

It was several long minutes later when the two of them parted as the need for air was far too strong for either of them to ignore, their breathing fast as he leaned his forehead against hers and their eyes met. 'I didn't mean to make you annoyed with me.' She admitted.

'I know you didn't, sweetheart, it's alright.' He pressed a tender kiss onto her forehead. 'I just hate it when I'm not with you, that's all. I didn't hurt you just now, did I?' He asked her gently.

'No.' She reassured him as she ran her fingers through his hair, Arthur offering her a loving smile as he pressed his lips to her soft cheek in a gentle kiss. She glanced down at the watch on her wrist once again before her heart began to race when she saw that it was ten-past six. 'Arthur, I should have been home ten minutes ago and it's a fifteen-minute walk from here to my house. My Mum and Dad are going to go mad with me.'

'Once we get you home I will explain to your Dad that I was the one who kept you out later. Don't worry about it, darling, it's going to be alright.' He stroked her beautiful blonde tresses.

Angela nodded with a soft smile then before he took her hand in his and they stood from the bench before beginning to make their way out of the park, Arthur slipping his fingers through the gaps in her own before he brushed his thumb across her knuckles in a comforting caress.

* * *

It was half-past six when Angela and Arthur reached the front door to the house that she lived in with her parents and younger brother, her heart racing as she knocked on it before Arthur slipped his arm around her waist and they waited for someone to open it. It wasn't long until her father came to the door, a disappointed sigh escaping him as his gaze fell upon her. 'And what time do you call this?' He raised an eyebrow at her as he leaned against the door frame.

'Doctor Turner, I was the one who kept her out past her curfew; I wouldn't blame her.' Arthur told him.

'I don't.' Patrick frowned. 'Angela, go inside and help your mother to finish making dinner.'

She rose up onto her tiptoes to press her lips against Arthur's cheek in a delicate kiss before releasing his hand and making her way past her father, Patrick's stern gaze fixed upon Arthur as he crossed his arms over his chest. 'When I allow you to take my daughter out on a date, I expect you to bring her back when my wife asks you to.' He growled. 'I know my daughter; I know how responsible she is and I know that she told you that she needed to come home far earlier than you decided to bring her back.' Arthur nodded in silence as he looked up at him.

'I apologise, Doctor Turner, I won't let it happen again.' He reassured him.

'See to it that you don't.' Patrick ordered. 'Or else I'm going to stop you from taking her out.'

'I understand.' Arthur said. 'Goodnight, Doctor Turner.'

'Goodnight, Arthur.' Patrick then closed the front door behind him before making his way to the kitchen where Angela was setting the table. 'I don't want you thinking that you're off the hook for this.' He said firmly when she looked up at him, Shelagh glancing over her shoulder. 'You know that the consequence for missing your curfew is a weeks' grounding.' A soft sigh escaped Angela's lips as she placed another plate down upon one of the deep red placemats.

'Angela did something wrong?' Teddy asked from the sofa in the sitting room. 'That's a first!'

'Teddy.' Shelagh warned as she looked over at him, the thirteen-year-old quietening down.

'But Daddy, I-' Angela started.

' _But Daddy,_  nothing.' Patrick interrupted. 'You know that your mother told you to be home at six o'clock and you decided to disobey her, which means that I'm grounding you for a week. I know that Arthur was the one who told you to stay out later, but you should have done the right thing and walked home. It's not like you had no other choice but to stay there, Angela.'

Angela felt her heart sink.

_If only he knew._

'Your mother and I give you a curfew to keep you safe, angel girl, and when you aren't back on time we start to get worried about you.' He told her as he made his way over to her and stroked her hair with his hand. 'You may be seventeen now, but you still need to be protected.'

'I know.' She sighed as she set down the last knife and fork. 'It won't happen again, Daddy, I promise.' Patrick offered her a loving smile before he drew her close and allowed her to wrap her arms around his waist, her head coming to settle on his chest before he pressed his warm lips to the crown of her head in a delicate kiss. 'I love you so much.' She sighed softly.

'I love you too, angel girl.' He reassured her as he ran the palms of his hands along the curve of her spine through her dress. 'I don't know about you, but I'm starving.' He chortled, Angela tilting her head back upon his chest in order to look up into his eyes as she giggled with him.

'Me too.' She admitted.

The two of them heard Shelagh laugh from where she was stood at the kitchen counter, their gazes travelling over to her before they watched her bring dinner over to the table. 'I'm glad you're both starving.' She giggled. 'Because I think I've made a bit too much Shepherd's Pie!'

'My favourite.' Angela and Patrick said in unison before laughing along with Shelagh as they made their way over to the table and sat down. Once everyone was sat at the table, Shelagh began to say grace as she always did whenever the four of them sat down to a meal together. As Angela listened to her mother speak and felt her father caress her hand as it rested atop the dining table, she was unable to stop the loving smile from spreading across her features.

She might love Arthur, but she loved her little family the most of all.

* * *

It was the late hours of that same evening when Patrick was laying in bed beside his wife, his gaze cast up at the ceiling of their bedroom as Shelagh's lips continued to brush warm open-mouthed kisses against the side of his neck. He had tried to shut his eyes and allow his wife's delicious kisses to be the sole thing on his mind, but he had been unable to do so. He found it impossible to stop thinking about Arthur. Something about that lad didn't sit well with him.

From the moment Angela had brought Arthur home so that Shelagh and himself could meet him, he had felt as though something was off about him. Even now, whenever he saw Angela and Arthur together he found that he felt unsettled. He had tried to reassure himself that he was just being stupid, but something told him that Arthur wasn't anywhere near as incredible or as charming as Angela made him out to be. He wasn't the gentleman that she saw him as.

Arthur was the first boy to take an interest in Angela and she had admitted several times that he made her feel special and that she loved how he didn't treat her as though she were a kid. Patrick had noticed, however, that his daughter seemed a tad nervous when she was around him. He had seen it when she had given him a kiss on the cheek before going inside after the two of them had come home earlier that evening - she had been hesitant to do so. He knew that he needed to talk to his daughter and find out what it was that was making her nervous, but he also knew that there was a large risk of Angela turning defensive with him if he did so.

'Dearest?' It was the sound of Shelagh's soft voice that brought him out of his thoughts a few moments later, Patrick turning his head in her direction before he saw the slight concern that lived in her piercing blue eyes. 'Is everything alright?' She gave his cheek a comforting caress.

He sighed as he brought his hand up to cover her own upon his cheek. 'I don't know what it is about him, but there's something about Arthur that unsettles me. I hate watching him hold hands with Angela and I hate watching her kiss him.' Shelagh blessed him with a warm smile.

'Have you ever thought that it might be because she's our little girl and you hate seeing her grow up?' She raised her brow at him as she laced their fingers and brought their joined hands to settle upon his chest. 'I know that my father felt the same way when I first began courting.'

'That might be part of the reason.' He admitted. 'But I know that there's something about that lad. I feel as though there's something that Angela isn't telling us about him but I don't know what it is and it worries me.' He released a light sigh, Shelagh kissing the corner of his mouth.

'Come here.' She whispered before shuffling out of his arms and opening her own to him, his lips curling up into a smile of adoration as he shifted into her embrace and lay his head upon her chest. 'You think about things in far too much depth, my darling, that's why you become so worried.' She told him as she pressed a languid kiss to his head and allowed him to drape his arm over her stomach before he snuggled against her. 'I know that Angela would tell us if there was something going on because she doesn't keep things from us, she never has done. I wouldn't get so worried until you actually have something to worry about, my dearest one.'

Patrick nuzzled his head beneath her chin then before she began to stroke his dark hair with the tips of her fingers. 'What would I do without you?' He sighed as his eyes fluttered closed.

'I ask myself that same question every day.' She admitted as she snugged him closer with her free hand. 'Get some sleep now, my love, we have to be at Nonnatus by 9:00 in the morning.'

'I love you.' He hummed as he settled in her embrace and she stretched to turn the lamp out.

'I love you too.' She kissed his crown once more. 'So much.'

* * *

In the small bedroom at the other end of the landing, Angela was laying in the darkness. Her tired eyes stung but she couldn't close them; she was exhausted but she just couldn't drift off to sleep. Thousands of thoughts were rushing through her head and made it impossible for her to settle and allow slumber to take her, and so she gazed out of the window at the moon.

She was so torn.

She loved Arthur more than she could put into words and whenever she was out with him he would tell her that he loved her, but were his words truthful ones? Sometimes she felt like he was courting her just so he had a girl on his arm, but sometimes he made her feel so special that there was no doubt in her mind that his love for her was genuine. She let out a soft sigh.

She knew that if she were to talk to her parents about how troubled she felt; if she asked the two of them to sit with her so that she could tell them about how Arthur had intimidated her and made her feel as though she had had no choice but to stay out past her curfew with him, they would help her. She knew that the two of them would never judge or scold her for feeling too nervous to speak to them; that they would just hold her close and reassure her that they would sort things out, but she didn't want to add more onto their plates. They were so busy as it was. She just felt so troubled and didn't have the first clue about who she could speak to.

Turning over to face her bedroom wall, she released a deep sigh and forced her eyes closed. She then remembered a sentence that her Mum often whispered to her when she was upset.

" _Things will look better in the morning."_

She just hoped that those words would be true in this instance.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please comment to let me know what you all thought! :-)


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